swallen iguana

[ilectra]

i bought this baby iguana 3 months ago. at first only his mouth was swollen but after one month his legs started to swell as well. yesterday after drinking some water he started moving his head and body violently and after a minute he passed out. can someone explain what is going on ?
P.S. i'm sorry if my english isn't very good, i'm greek.

[JennaAndIguanaGwen]

That is not good at all, I'm not sure what is going on but he NEEDS to be taken to a vet ASAP! My first thought is Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD) but I don't have enough information to even be close to sure. MBD is from lack of calcium absorption and one common symptom is a swollen jaw. Iguanas fail to absorb calcium if either they don't have a good UVB light or if their diet lacks the proper balance of calcium. His diet should be mainly leafy greens like collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, or dandelion greens. He should also have some vegetables like acorn squash or butternut squash. There are a lot of options but those are the basics. Here is a link to our food page: tesa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=diet&action=display&thread=3578
UVB lights are not just a heat lamp - they are a special kind of light that reptiles absolutely need and pet store brand lights don't always cut it. If reptiles don't have a good source of UVB they can't absorb calcium which leads to MBD.

Please take him to the vet right away! I'm really worried for the little guy I hope he will be ok

-Jenna

*edit* the shaking could also be a sign of advanced MBD. Just thought I would add that.